Contents

Little is known about Roderick's life prior to enlisting in the Altean army, other than his friendship and rivalry with Luke. When they begin their training together, he keeps cool despite others getting nervous (like Katarina) or even cocky (like Luke). During his training, he strikes friendships with the other members of the 7th Platoon, which Luke is also a part of. He sees Prince Marth to his victory over Hardin and Medeus, and after the war becomes a Paladin of Altea.

Roderick tries his best to impress Prince Marth not only with his lance but with his attitude, which would lead to his chivalrous and overly loyal personality. During the Grustian expedition, he continues to follow Marth while seemingly making Luke look like a lesser knight in terms of composure and attitude. It is implied in his death quote and base conversations that he has feelings for Cecil.

Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.

Roderick ties with Luke for the third highest availability in the game as he joins in Prologue 3 and comes with the a base level of 1 giving him much room for level-ups as his bases are mostly lower than Luke's. This makes him somewhat weaker in the early game but his higher Skill, Speed and Luck growths can make Roderick into a fast and accurate unit if trained enough. He also has instant access to ranged combat as his D Rank in Lances allows for easy use of javelins whereas Luke would need to specifically train for chapters to get the needed Weapon Experience.

When it comes to reclassing Roderick has a wide array of viable options owing to his balanced growths:

Archer->Sniper: With his high HP and Speed growths coupled with decent Defense Roderick will be able to take or outright dodge a good amount of hits before dying and dish out good damage with a decent Critical hit chance making him an overall good unit.These qualities will become even clearer when he promotes into a Sniper. He will mostly compete with the more damage oriented Ryan for the position of the army's Archer/Sniper and it depends solely on the player's preference who you want to use.

Myrmidon->Swordmaster: Similar to the Archer but with higher mobility and a bit more Resistance. Sadly there is a very high standard coming from Navarre and Cecil, making this option less appealing. Another downside is his Weapon with E in Swords where most other Myrmidons have at least D.

Only possible after beating Hard Mode

Knight->General: A match probably made in heaven. Roderick will boast at least 50% Growth in everything that isn't Magic-related and is guaranteed to gain HP combined with instant Javelins and extremely high availability surpassing that of all but 3 possible armor Knights. But he will have trouble with his base Speed leaving him open for double attacks from the hordes of Axe-Users the early chapters throw at the player. This can be remedied by reclassing to an Archer first and gaining some speed, though. Overall this is probably the best class for the Serene Knight.

Mercenary->Hero: Like the Myrmidon but with Axes once promoted. This again has insanely high standards with both his fellow knight Luke and the Mercenary Ogma who both boast stats better tailored for this class.

Axe-User:

Overall: Apparently almost every guy can be good with Axes if he wants to as Roderick surpasses Cord, Bord and Barst in everything except some bases and weapon rank. This class also gives him the upper hand against the Lance- and Axe-heavy chapters that the early game has to offer.

Fighter->Warrior: Roderick will be good in everything except Defense and Magic-related stats once he is trained properly.His good Skill growth works well with the inaccurate nature of axes and gives his damage output an even bigger boost than the class change in the from of critical hits.Once promoted he will also gain Bows to further the already great options that Axes bring even more and he'll likely become one of your better front line units.

Pirate->Warrior: With very good Speed and Luck growths Roderick can overcome his Class' low defenses by simply avoiding the damage and killing most enemies before they can land a hit. This happens at the cost of some of his raw damage output and accuracy making him less optimal until promoted. Once he does become a Berserker he will gain not only a massive 15% Critical hit boost but also more durability in the form of a much needed boost to his HP and Defense.

Overall, Roderick will be a balanced unit with at least decent stats across the board.

“Kris, I've heard the rumors about you as well. I need to see your ability firsthand, especially if you're to become the commander. I ask you this, as a fellow squire of Altea.”—Roderick's battle quote against My Unit in Prologue II from New Mystery of the Emblem.

(†) indicates a Hero that is obtained via Grand Hero Battles (‡) indicates a Hero that is obtained via Tempest Trials (*) indicates a Hero that is currently only available as a Special Hero (¥) indicates a Hero that is only available in Legendary and Mythic Hero Summoning Focuses